Submitted by
jojie tan
a Cross Country Rider
from philippines Date Reviewed: November 25, 2007
Duration Product Used:
Less than 1 month
Price Paid:
$25.00
Purchased At:
purchased to Raven
Strengths:
its really sad to say but i connot find any strengths on this tire.
Weaknesses:
oh man this tire wear really fast specially on my rear tire... its not worth it for $25 bucks or 800 pesos.
Similar Products Used:
none. its one of a kind
Bike Setup:
XC
Bottom Line:
dont ever think to get this crap! it will disappoint you. i dont wanna give even 1 chili on this product. what a waste of money.
Value Rating:Overall Rating:
Submitted by
Doug
a Cross Country Rider
from Wakefield, Mass. Date Reviewed: May 29, 2007
Favorite Trail:
Boston area variety
Duration Product Used:
3 months
Price Paid:
$25.00
Purchased At:
eBay
Strengths:
Super light. Great tread design. Sheds mud. Hooks up great in dry, wet, rooty, just about all conditions.
Weaknesses:
Light weight has given it a thin casing.
Similar Products Used:
Specialized Fast Trak, Resolution. Panaracer Fire XC Pro.
Bike Setup:
05 Specialized FSRxc. Mavic 717/XT hubs, XT drivetrain, Truvative Team post, stem, flat bars. Rock Shox Revelation 426 Air fork. Hayes MX1 mech. discs.
Bottom Line:
I've set up this bike to be as much of a budget racer as possible. Frame weight is an issue. The tires were terrific at a race this past weekend. The course was a good mix of dry dust single track with half a dozen stream crossings and some quick muddy sections thrown in here and there. Lots of roots and a few rocks. Nothing stopped this tire from performing! It took everything in stride and kept me going. Not once did I have to stop for loss of traction. Lots of tight twisty sections on the downhills and climbs. No loss of cornering confidence. I hung it out and they kept me in the race. Really impressed with the bite and weight of these tires. Ran about 35-40 psi with tubes. No flats. Great racing tire. Giving 4 chilis because the sidewalls could potentialy be compromised on really sharp rocky sections. But they aren't an all-mountain tire.
Value Rating:Overall Rating:
Submitted by
david tweeddale
a Racer
from barling, ar. 72923 Date Reviewed: November 3, 2006
Favorite Trail:
Womble - Arkansas
Duration Product Used:
2 Years
Price Paid:
$40.00
Purchased At:
online various places
Strengths:
Super Super Fast and Hooks up Well. Great for dry conditions. Best XC racing tire I've ever used.
Weaknesses:
Wears Fast and is very slippery in wet conditions. Not good for sharp rock gardens.
Similar Products Used:
10 to 15 other various tires
Bike Setup:
Santa Cruz Blur all top of the line components.
Bottom Line:
This is the best XC racing tire I've found. Super Fast.
Value Rating:Overall Rating:
Submitted by
Big Daddy K
a
from Livermore, CA, USA Date Reviewed: March 31, 2006
Favorite Trail:
LEFT LEFT LEFT
Duration Product Used:
Tested or demo'ed only
Price Paid:
$35.00
Purchased At:
Livermore Cyclery
Strengths:
Small Profile Not too heavy Never flatted
Weaknesses:
Used once for Sea Otter Epic ... tread was gone by 50% +/- by the time ride completed - could not withstand big breaking. Better suited for short track (known distances).
Similar Products Used:
All five Elements (except yellows) and DH -as a rule me likey Tioga.
Bike Setup:
Enduro Pro with Fox 'nilla 125 XT group using Larsen TT up front at the time.
Bottom Line:
POOR LITTLE THING JUST DIDN'T HOLD TOGETHER
Value Rating:Overall Rating:
Submitted by
Skillit
a Racer
from Long Beach, CA. Date Reviewed: September 12, 2005
Favorite Trail:
Holy Jim
Duration Product Used:
More than 3 years
Price Paid:
$25.00
Purchased At:
wont say
Strengths:
Unbelievable Hook up on all terrain.
Weaknesses:
Fast wear
Similar Products Used:
python light
Bike Setup:
2003 Jekyll 3000 with 1.9's, 2005 Scalpel 3000 with 2.0's
Bottom Line:
I raced these tires for three years at Sea Otter from muddy to dry. Trained on them in between races. I use Stans and have never had a flat. Recently I took the Scalpel and raced the Brian Head Epic 100 on 2.0's. I took them off my single speed so I could replace the brand new pythons that came on the Scalpel. Blew a seal on the Lefty at 32 miles and dropped pressure from 40 to 35 and finished the race without suspension. Cross Country Racers this tire is a must. I WOULD RATHER RIDE USED RED PHOENIX THAN BRAND NEW PYTHONS!
Value Rating:Overall Rating:
Submitted by
crash
a Cross Country Rider
from NY Date Reviewed: August 24, 2005
Duration Product Used:
3 months
Price Paid:
$30.00
Strengths:
lightweight, fast
Weaknesses:
lightweight, thin
Similar Products Used:
tioga blue, wtb veloc, wtb moto, spec pro
Bike Setup:
chameleon, vanilla r, hayes 9, xt, rf xc xtype, thompson post
Bottom Line:
pinch flat at 38 lbs, pinch at 40 lbs, pinch at 45 lbs, pich at 50lbs, pinch at 55lbs, pinch flat pinch flat pinch flat and ... oh yeah, pinch flat - these tires would be great for fire roads, but throw in a rock or a log and they underperform, im a bit abusive but i have never had as many flats - i ride 4-5 times/wk on fairly aggressive xc trail and i have literally flatted 4 times in my last 7 outings with these tires - they're driving me f-ing nuts
Value Rating:Overall Rating:
Submitted by
Ricardo Rueda
a Cross Country Rider
from Bogota, Colombia Date Reviewed: August 21, 2005
Favorite Trail:
Betania
Duration Product Used:
Less than 1 month
Purchased At:
OEM
Strengths:
Price, Lightweight, front and rear specific.
Weaknesses:
Wear fast on paved but they are not for paved roads anyway.
Similar Products Used:
Ching Shen, Maxxis Medusa and WTB Velociraptor
Bike Setup:
Felt EPO stock except for pedals.
Bottom Line:
Great tires for mud and muddy hardpacks. Corner very well, haven't hard one single flat. They are great for thick mud, they just dig and rarely loose any traction. Haven't tried them on dry hardpack yet.
Value Rating:Overall Rating:
Submitted by
Eric
a Racer
from seattle Date Reviewed: April 21, 2005
Favorite Trail:
haha
Duration Product Used:
Less than 1 month
Purchased At:
stock on bike
Strengths:
none
Weaknesses:
these tires stink. at high speed gravel downhills they will float and ptoentially cause you to crash. The first day I rode these tires I was going about 10 mph and took a easy 90 degree turn and complety power slid without even braking. A truly near death experience.
Submitted by
Kris Kern
a Cross Country Rider
from Brooklyn, MI, USA Date Reviewed: April 8, 2005
Favorite Trail:
FT Custer
Duration Product Used:
1 Year
Purchased At:
Stock with bike.
Strengths:
Fast tire, good grip in most situations.
Weaknesses:
No bite in slick mud and wet leaves.A little heavy(wire version)
Similar Products Used:
IRC, Conti
Bike Setup:
03 Kikapu
Bottom Line:
Tese tires are great in the right conditions. Tried to ride them last spring and hated them. No control on wet trails in MI. Put them back on in the summer when it dried out and found them to be a great tire. One ride this spring confirmed they are not for the wet.When it dries out I will get the kevlar ones. Would recomend only for dry .
Value Rating:Overall Rating:
Submitted by
Nate
a Racer
from Logan, Utah Date Reviewed: March 14, 2005
Duration Product Used:
3 months
Purchased At:
Joyride Bikes
Strengths:
Mud, cornering, lack of flats, very lightweight
Weaknesses:
Sluggish rolling, occasionally breaks loose on climbs
So far, so good. I haven't experienced the durability problems of others, as well as the flat problems. I've been riding them for three months and not had a flat (Especially bizarre for me).
They do extremely well in mud because of the wide knob spacing (Considering their 1.9 size), and corner superbly because of the soft rubber. However, the softer rubber causes much slower rolling resistance than say, a Python. It will probably start wearing out soon as well. They occasionally break loose on very steep climbs, but I've yet to find an XC tire that does that exceptionally well.
They are very light, much lighter than other XC tires, but this probably has a downside as well. I'll post again in three months if they're shot.
They came OEM on my bike, but I probably wouldn't pay the 40 $ MSRP for them. For that much, you can get the superior Pythons.
Value Rating:Overall Rating:
Submitted by
Elvis
a Cross Country Rider
from UK Date Reviewed: February 18, 2005
Duration Product Used:
6 months
Strengths:
Low rolling resistance. I use the bike not only as an off road machine but a as a winter alternative to my road bike. It flies on tarmac compared to my friends bike with semi slicks. Dry trail performance also seems good.
Weaknesses:
No puncture resistance. The first time I used them I got 5 thorn holes in the back tyre and had to get off and push. Then I noticed the front one went down too.
Similar Products Used:
N/A
Bike Setup:
Came as stock on Kona Kikapu Deluxe.
Bottom Line:
I got around the puncture thing with Slime inner tubes. Mine are the steel versions. I might consider the Kevlar versions when its time to change, if only for rolling resistance and weight.
Value Rating:Overall Rating:
Submitted by
Andrew
a
from Melbourne, Australia Date Reviewed: November 24, 2004
Duration Product Used:
6 months
Purchased At:
Came with bike
Strengths:
Light weight (mine's 1.95), low rolling resistance, excellent traction on hardpack to light to moderate surfaces. Drift nicely. Also works well on wet tarmac and mud!
Weaknesses:
Fast wear, lack of grip on anything with large loose surface(except sand) like gravel, too terrain specific. Death trap in wet rock gardens. Quite pricy for so little rubber.
Similar Products Used:
Too many to recall
Bike Setup:
GT Zaskar Expert '04, stock except with GT CNC XC wheels, XT V-brakes and Fox F100 RLT '05.
Bottom Line:
This tire came stock with the bike to help moving the bike off the showroom floor because they make the bike light with it's tiny weight (410 grams or thereabouts). First glance gave me an impression as a lightweight XC tire and one ride confirmed this. Easy to accelerate due to low weight and short knobs. Excellent traction in hardpack to moderately packed dirt -BUT- it is easy to provoke the tire into a drift due tire's low centre knobs and smallish side knobs. Hook up surprisingly well in mud but requires exceptional concentration and balance on the rider's part to get the most out of this tire in slimy stuff but tire sheds mud very well so allows the rider to grind on. Also surprisingly grippy in the wet tarmac as well for such a small tire.
That was the good bit. Here's the bad news.
If you want a tire to scare yourself silly, take this tire onto a gravel covered fire trail and get up to a decent speed. If you've got this tire on the back prepare yourself for some extended sideway drift cornering once you start leaning into a corner. Once it start to drift, it keeps hanging out there until either you 1)slow down 2) scrub off too much speed sliding 3) fallen off your bike. God help you if you've got it on the front because you won't be able to stay upright and tire won't carve. And yes, the tire shows severe wear and tear after short time. Suicidal if you go rock garden riding with these in wet. I did (had no choice) and it was like watching a soap being flushed down the toilet. Definately a terrain specific tire suited only for XC riding in prepared surface, so worth considering if you intend to race XC in clean, dry conditions without too many technical terrains. Otherwise too skinny and weak for serious trail riding.
Value Rating:Overall Rating:
Submitted by
Scott
a Cross Country Rider
from Australia Date Reviewed: November 21, 2004
Favorite Trail:
Anywhere - plenty round here
Duration Product Used:
6 months
Price Paid:
$25.00
Strengths:
light, roll fast
Weaknesses:
thin casing seems to puncture real easy
Similar Products Used:
various
Bike Setup:
Mongoose Newman frame hardtail
Bottom Line:
These are more of a smooth trail or XC race tyre than a knock around tyre. I recently got two flats over the course of a two hour ride with one of these on the rear. The first was this tiny little splinter that went in b/w the knobs. Then at the end of my ride a stick as thick as a pencil and about an inch long went straight trough as well. They also seem to wear real quick. I have an Extreme on the front, might get one for the back too.
Value Rating:Overall Rating:
Submitted by
Christie
a Cross Country Rider
from Flagstaff, AZ Date Reviewed: July 27, 2004
Favorite Trail:
Flagstaff
Duration Product Used:
Less than 1 month
Price Paid:
$50.00
Purchased At:
LBS
Strengths:
nice traction
Weaknesses:
super fast wear
Similar Products Used:
WTB Mutano, Veloci
Bike Setup:
SC Blur
Bottom Line:
I bought this tire with the presumption that at $50, it would be a long-wearing tire for the rear. The traction was really good for the first ride, but there was very noticeable wear on the center treads, and it increased with each additional ride. I am ready for a new tire after about 5 2-3 hour rides - really bad! I am difinitely going back to WTBs, maybe they are just better suited to the terrain. I would not recommend this tire!
Value Rating:Overall Rating:
Submitted by
Walt Pierce
a
from Lakewood, CO Date Reviewed: July 18, 2004
Duration Product Used:
Less than 1 month
Purchased At:
mail order
Strengths:
I got 7 rides out of the tire (less than 100 miles)! With this few rides, I didn't notice any outstanding strengths with this product.
Weaknesses:
The tire showed extreme wear in a very short time. Then, on the 7th ride, the casing under the tread began to fail. This caused quarter-sized bubbles to appear in the tread. Needless to say, that was the last ride I had on this tire. Additionally, in the short time I rode the tire, I noticed a lot of squirm - the rubber compound too soft? Maybe this tire is O.K. for a small, lightweight rider, but not for a larger person. Finally, I did notice that the tire did not perform as well as the Hutchinson Python - it rolled slower and did not provide an equal amount of grip.
Bottom Line:
Stay away from this tire! The poor quality could be potentially dangerous.
Value Rating:Overall Rating:
Submitted by
Daryl King
a Racer
from Boise and SoCal Date Reviewed: July 10, 2004
Favorite Trail:
Lag Coast Wilderness Park Singletracks
Duration Product Used:
Less than 1 month
Purchased At:
IMT, Came on my Kona
Strengths:
They're good for what they are intended to do. Probably jsut fine for most XC racing. Light, hook up good on loamy sticky tracks, just right amount of knobby for fast XC tires
Weaknesses:
not good in sand or loose which there exists both in SoCal (patches of gravel/loose) and in the foothills of Boise, a bit narrow for all around
Bike Setup:
Kona Kikapu
Bottom Line:
worth running for a while but you may be dissatisfied with them for all mountain riding, not enough knobby too skinny for true stability as a front tire
rear hooks up pretty good on technical climbs when you finesse, but a grippier tire would make it easier to ride technical trails
Value Rating:Overall Rating:
Submitted by
Ben
a Racer
from SoCal Date Reviewed: April 8, 2004
Duration Product Used:
Less than 1 month
Price Paid:
$35.00
Purchased At:
Local shop
Strengths:
Sand, Mud shedding, Hardpack, Lightweight, Traction in general
Weaknesses:
Quick wear, suck on pavement due to extreme stiction
These tires are simply the best tires out there, im using the tubeless version with the stan's sealant. I have not found any condition in the dirt in which these tires did not preform better than any tire i have ever used. Truly the perfect all around tire and the only tire ive found that kick ass on the sand. However be forewarned these tires also wear faster than any other tire ive ever ridden. Two races was all i got out of them or about 100 miles before the lugs were severely worn down. 5 chilis for their amazing preformace for cross country riding/racing but only four chilis in value due to the equally amazing rate of wear.
Value Rating:Overall Rating:
Submitted by
adam
a Cross Country Rider
from kokomo, in Date Reviewed: September 3, 2003
Duration Product Used:
3 months
Price Paid:
$90.00
Purchased At:
forget
Strengths:
grips well under EVERY condition. the rubber is soft and breaking heavily on pavement with nearly through you over the bar! well priced and very light
Weaknesses:
the unreal grip comes at a price. they wear out like pensil erasers! i have to cover about a mile and a half on concrete to get to my riding spot ( a big grassy park with a "few" hidden surprises in the deep grass). anyway, the rear tire rubbed away so fast, that when my legs were getting strong enough to push the crank hard during climbing, these boys let me down!
Bike Setup:
EPX Terrashark frame, mostly XT drivetrain, easton bar and stem and marzoochi MX Pro fork, crossmax ust disk
Bottom Line:
if you even touch pavement, look for another tire. otherwise, it is tough to beat. price is about right. a very specific tire; mainly for sand, dirt, mud, grass, you know the stuff you should be biking over.
Value Rating:Overall Rating:
Submitted by
Mikey Bee
a Weekend Warrior
from midlands, uk Date Reviewed: July 31, 2003
Duration Product Used:
3 months
Price Paid:
$50.00
Strengths:
I'm not expert but I thought I give my view anyway. I ride a bit of hard pack, trials, some rocky downhill stuff, and loose pack, this tyre seems to grip perfectly well (not tried in mud yet) and seems to dig in real well when you need it. Very light too.
Weaknesses:
As above really, the wear is damn quick! If you do have to venture on road you can clearly hear the stiction of the tyre, I except the wear as a trade off for good grip.It seems to collect punctures though, never had so many, mainly thorns.
Similar Products Used:
Not sure, Maxxis, Contis
Bike Setup:
Some old hard tail, now fitted with Z5 Bombers up front, LX bits and bobs
Bottom Line:
They were on special ($50 a pair) so that's the main reason I got them. Superb grip but at the expensive of high wear rate and very puncture prone, but they have saved my ass on a few ride outs though! I'll see how bad the tyre wear is in a few months - if they last that long!
Not had any problems with the knobs breaking off though.
Value Rating:Overall Rating:
Submitted by
Adam
a Cross Country Rider
from Barnesville, Ga Date Reviewed: July 29, 2003
Duration Product Used:
Less than 1 month
Purchased At:
Bike Center
Strengths:
This tire is really soft and handles really well in sand and loose dirt. They also clean really well in mud.
Weaknesses:
They do wear a little fast, but stay off the pavement you have a mountain bike.
Similar Products Used:
Panaracer, Hutchinson
Bike Setup:
Cannondale Scapel
Bottom Line:
These are the best tires I have ever owned. They are very smooth and grip really well. They clean mud better than any other tires I have ever owned. I will purchase another set as soon as these wear out which maybe a little sooner than I would like, but so be it. By the way they hold air over a long period of time better than the other tubeless tires I've seen.
Value Rating:Overall Rating:
Submitted by
Brian
a Cross Country Rider
from St. Louis Date Reviewed: July 24, 2003
Favorite Trail:
Berryman
Duration Product Used:
3 months
Purchased At:
Came with bike
Strengths:
Mud Shedding
Weaknesses:
Soft Tread
Bike Setup:
Kula and parts
Bottom Line:
The tread is extremely soft and can be split easily. The knobs are too small and often gets damaged or ripped off of the base tire on gravel or transitional terrain. This tire is designed for single track dirt/sand terrain. It does a good job of tracking in the sand and light mud and sheds the two well. It performs below average to average on gravel uphills or on exposed roots. It doesn't bite too well if you come out of your saddle if you are really trying to dig in. This could be a good tire if you are running on gradual inclines or flat surfaces. I just don't ride on those surfaces often so for me there is a better tire out there. Bottom Line: If you like to tear it up on the trail, you are also going to tear up this tire very easily. I went through a set in a little over a month. Value rating 3 chilis-came with the bike. Overall rating 3 chilis (good)-could be a good tire for the right surface
Value Rating:Overall Rating:
Submitted by
Sam
a Racer
from Madison, WI Date Reviewed: February 2, 2003
Duration Product Used:
Less than 1 month
Price Paid:
$75.00
Purchased At:
on-line
Strengths:
This is a review for the tubeless version. i'm putting it here because no category has been established for the UST.
This is a very light weight tire for a UST - mine was 550 grams and that was what attracted me to the tire.
Weaknesses:
Very soft rubber - this is not an everyday tire. I rode 3 hours in Southern Kettle Morraine in WI and the rear tire was trashed. Definitely not a tire for rocky trails.
Similar Products Used:
Name it.
Bottom Line:
This tire handled well in very loose terrain - actually was the best tire I have used when it hit the sand - tracks nicely.
Very slow roller - not for racing. You can feel it bog you down in pretty much anything - the rubber is so soft, you can feel the drag even on hardpack.
The tire wear was baad - just be aware of it. If you ride the soft loose stuff, this could be a good tire for you. If your riding rocks and abrasive trails, the rubber will be gone before the end of the ride.
$ 40.00
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